Episode 5, This is Warsaw
After getting back to Przemysl from Lviv and sleeping an entire day, I decided to move on to Warsaw. I had been in contact with an American teacher named Paul who was urgently searching for an English speaker to take over his classes at a more long-term facility for Ukrainian refugees. Getting out of depressing Tesco where lice and sickness had broken out and into a large city sounded like just what I needed. I am so happy I went. My train ride reminded me much of the ones in Germany. Full platforms of people fleeing, handing in child after child and bags after bags, booked out train cars with people sitting on the ground and of course, the obligatory toddler meltdown that could be heard through the entire train. Just like on my 12 hour bus drive to Poland, I used this 6 hour train ride to read, write and think. When I arrived at the train station, I was welcomed by a now well gotten used to image: World central kitchen tents and hubs for refugees. Besides this feeling more modern due to being in Poland's capital, not much changed. Hello, Warsaw my old friend! Hello big City! The day after, my new energy filled self met another American named Tom who had briefly subbed for Paul. This center was such a contrast to what I had just come from. A fresh and sterile smell, clean indoor showers and toilets, a large cantine, classrooms and of course the giant rooms filled with hundreds of cots. Everyone was extremely welcoming and excited about my arrival. I got started immediately and hardly had time to stress over the fact that I never even had taught my second language, English, to anyone! The timetable with my name immediately brought in 12-16 extremely eager students and we spent the first hour just getting to know each other. While I was afraid to be too invasive when asking questions about them and their life, I quickly found out just how important asking exactly these questions were. The students' ages ranged from 9-70 and so did their proficiency level. One thing they had in common though, was that they tried to show up, no matter what. I immediately fell in love with my little group and the classes we created together twice a day. It did not take long for me to notice how absolutely crucial these classes were to them and their daily life. All of them were on hold, waiting for a Canadian visa approval. The longer the wait was, the better their English was expected to get. At the center, I met Ukrainians from the hardest hit parts of the country such as Mariupol, Odessa, Kherson and Charkiev. I heard stories of businesses being lost, freshly built homes being burnt down and families split up indefinitely. Again, the stories from the news became a name and a face. I will never forget my students and friends at the center. I am so thankful to have gone to Warsaw and can not wait to return.
Thank you for listening to Inside the Other Side. I am always happy to connect with you listeners via email or on social media @insidetheotherside.
Until next week!
Slava Ukraini!
